Indy Birthday Bash

Thousands of people turned out to help the Independent celebrate a decade in the Springs at an all-day bash last Friday on the lawn surrounding the Pioneers Museum downtown. Clowns showed up to make balloon animals for the kids, bands jammed on two stages all day, and dozens of venders offered food and goodies. The fete was the see-and-be-seen for several local politicians whose often-divergent ideologies never stand in the way of a good time. County Commissioner Wayne Williams was spotted picking up a purple Independent First Amendment T-shirt while Democrats walked by in their own shirts advertising U.S. Senate candidate Mike Miles. City Councilman Jerry Heimlicher schmoozed his way through the crowd and Indy staffers could be spotted a mile away in their lime-green shirts. Publisher John Weiss was amused when a disappointed "fan" learned he wasn't the guy who writes a regular column. And, a near end-of-the-day catastrophe was averted when Independent manager of the publisher Sherri VanEngelen escaped a Porta-Pottie unscathed after the rental company showed up a bit early to retrieve their property.